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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: drill · chest · fall · bear · rush · stock · bulb · march

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. drill — a practice
  3. chest — of your body
  4. bulb — for light
  5. fall — the season
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. bear — the animal
  8. stock — goods
  9. march — the month
  10. drill — army training
  11. fall — to drop
  12. bulb — for light
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. stock — shares
  15. drill — the tool
  16. chest — a box
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. march — music
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. bear — the animal
  22. chest — of your body
  23. rush — hurry
  24. fall — to drop

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com